How to Sketch an Anime Face

Step 1.

We are taking a shortcut in the guidelines. Draw the circle with the intersecting lines for the eyes and nose. Get in the long lines for his neck and shoulder. Sketch with a No. 2 pencil. Remember to do it lightly for easy erasure.

Step 2.

You might need to click on the picture to see where to draw the two lines for hair highlight, spiked hair, eyebrow and eye.

Step 3.

Now draw in the other side of his hair, eyebrow, and eye. Watch closely where these relate to the guidelines and draw lightly please.

Step 4.

Now sketch in his nose (with the shadow lines) and mouth. See how they relate to the guidelines.

Step 5.

Take your time while drawing this picture because in this step you need to pay close attention to how his hair spikes at his ears and nape of neck. Remember to draw in his face outline. Like most anime's, it extends halfway from the circle to a point

Step 6.

This guy is truly king of the spikes! Draw in the spikes on the left side of the paper. Sketch it in, erase... practice to get those shapes in.

Step 7.

Finally, draw in his collar and shirt. Now you can erase the guidelines if you haven't already.

Step 8.

Your drawing may look like this or you might have your own version. At this point, you can color in your picture with a medium of your choice.

Step 9.

Even anime or cartoon artists need to know the anatomy of the face. Here are some examples. TOP VIEW: the line across the head marks the ears & the line down the center marks the nose. PERSPECTIVE VIEW: The line across the center of the eyes goes to the top of the ears. FRONT & SIDE VIEW: 1/6 area is Top of Head to Hairline. First 1/3 is Hairline of Forehead to Eyebrows. Second 1/3 is Ears & Eyebrows to Bottom of Nose. Third 1/3 is Mouth halfway between Bottom of Nose to Bottom of Chin. Remember on Front View there is an eye width at bridge of nose, left & right side of face (on each side of the eyes). TIP: These proportions are average and can vary from person to person. These, if you want to call them, "exercises", help you to "see" around and through the forms, making you a more successful artist, whether anime or realistic.

Step 10.

To get that pro perspective look, draw the box --front, sides, and back. Then draw the oval of the head and a center line across for the eyes and center line down to divide the face. You can practice from the models. Notice the eye levels at Bottom View, Front View, and Top View.

Step 11.

Here are actual anime head view positions. See how similar they are to the more realistic models in the previous steps. Difference is the top portion of the head is much larger and the lower part of the face is nearly one third of the head size. Last but not leas, the nose is hardly noticeable and the chin comes to a point.

Step 12.

In more realistic eyes, there are right and wrong ways to draw. But if you look closely, you can see those main rules still keep with most anime drawings. (1) Draw the outline of the eye at an angle. Do not hook the tear duct to the eye. (2) The iris is slightly covered by the upper eyelid. Do not draw full circled irises inside the eye. (3) There is always a fleshy pink membrane near the eye white (sclera). That is why the iris looks like it's floating on the membrane, not touching the tip of the lower lid. Do not draw the iris touching the lower lid. (4) The catch lights in the eye normally has one near the top and at the bottom. These are at a 180-degree angle. The top light is bigger than the lower one. ANOTHER TIP: The SCLERA isn't white within the eye. It's a light gray because of the eye is sunken in the socket. Also the top eyelid cause a shadow over the iris. And the catch light in the iris is never at the tip of the upper lid.

Step 13.

Here are some different expressive female eyes in this step. Try drawing them and see how much fun it is to get that certain emotion. Also notice where the lashes are positioned and how the eyes are shaped. Don't forget to add the catch lights, which anime are so popular for.

Step 14.

Here are some popular male eyes. Notice how lashes aren't as noticeable as on the female, except the last eye.

Step 15.

Noses are barely noticeable on anime. But they do vary. Next time you see anime pictures, check out the different nose shapes of character types. And don't forget to sketch some of these beauties! *wink*

Step 16.

Same thing with mouths. There are so many different types and moods. Practice sketching some of these styles.

Step 17.

Without lighting, we have a flat subject. That's what makes Usui so interesting. The red arrows are direction of light. Blue arrows are the shadows made by his hair nose and head. Here are three common sources of lighting that helps bring out certain effects in a face. DRAMATIC is made by overhead light. This can be in midday sun or strong moonlight. MYSTERIOUS is made when the lighting comes upward or beneath the face like holding a candle or flashlight. You'll see this effect used a lot in graphic or noir novels. CONVENTIONAL is the most popular. It is made at a 45-degree angle light placed to the side, above the subject and slightly toward the foreground.

Step 18.

Last but not least, I want to show you how great a pencil is. And you can get these same effects with a regular No. 2 pencil. The first picture shows how to hold your pencil for Overhand (great for writing & details) and Underhand (great for shading large areas in wide strokes). You can practice tone shading and take it a step further with the Tone Exercise. I'm closing now. Let me know what you think of this tutorial. I love hearing from you. Fav, comment, or click on "Love it," to show your support! Luv and hugs to you all!

Anime has taken us by storm. I literally love it. In this tutorial you'll get a chance to draw the handsome Usui Takumi from Kaichou wa Maid Sama (Sorry, I don't know Japanese). BUT I fell in love with this picture and had to draw it for the anime face... completely digitally in mostly my SAI and Adobe Photoshop programs. I'll have some tips for you after the main drawing steps of the preview picture. I hope you find this tutorial enjoyable. Let me know what you think of this tut by commenting, faving or clicking on "Love It"! Peace n love to ya!

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